A million electric charging stations by 2030

Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany plans to have one million charging stations for electric cars by 2030, that is, within a span of 10 years. Currently, Germany has 20,000 charging stations. Stephen Weil, the premier of the region in Germany that produces Volkswagen intends to establish 100,000 charging stations by 2021.

That is pretty fast. The Germans mean business and they are likely to reach the targets of Weil by 2021 and Merkel’s by 2030. It is likely that Germany will have only electric cars by that time. Imagine a country with 85.5 million people, the 17th largest populated country in the world with a population density of 240 people per square-kilometre is going to have a carbon neutral transportation system in just 10 years!

Canada, with less than 37 million people with a density of four people per square-kilometre hasn’t yet started thinking seriously on this issue. Looking at the smaller number of people and the vastness of the landmass maybe Canada can meet such targets of Germany with onethird of the above number of charging stations, but may need longer period and larger inputs. Canada is richer in resources than Germany but is short of visionaries and patriots like Angela Merkel and Stephen Weil. Canadian leaders fail to see the business opportunity, job creation and environmental stewardship involved in the plan of Germany. Canadians need to wake up and speed up.

Canada must think faster to develop non-fossil fuel energy, establish long distance, electrically-run and faster train services parallel to, or otherwise, of its highways over the length and breadth of the country, train services like bullet trains as they have in Japan, China, etc., both for passenger and goods transportation, which will enable the country to pull out all fossil fuelled cars and trucks from Canadian roads and make available electric cars and trucks on all the railway stations for short distance travel and hauling goods.

Since our leaders are still subservient to the greedy fossil fuel lobby, we are not likely to be anywhere near by the year 2030 as targeted by Germany. However, it must be doable for Canada by 2050, which is the target date set by the Paris agreement.

Germany is already exploring the possibility of hydrogen as the additional alternate fuel for future transportation and industry. This must be thought of as the only fuel for aviation and shipping for the future. And Canada must be in the picture actively and constructively.

P.E.I. government has $57 million of surplus for the current financial year. The provincial government must seriously think about utilizing this money to give as rebates and subsidies to those establishing solar, wind, bio, and geothermal, etc., energy sources for their lighting, heating, cooling, transportation and other energy requirements, and to establish infrastructure facilities for them.

Again, I would say, as a small community and land mass P.E.I. could be the torch bearer for the whole country and for the world. The leaders in this province with patriotism, vision and a sense of mission must step in fast.